The issue of permanent pacemaker implantation following cardiac surgery

The issue of postoperative arrhythmias requiring pacemaker therapy is widely studied in the field of cardiac surgery and it is a complex perioperative problem. The aim of this paper is to summarize the relevant international guidelines and recommendations and to present our hospital's experience. We present the current, decisive recommendations and important studies, and present patients who underwent pacemaker implantation within one month after cardiac surgery between 01. 01. 2014 and 31. 12. 2018 in our hospital and compare them with the international findings. According to the international literature, the rate of permanent pacemaker implantation after cardiac surgery ranges from about 1.5% to 5%, and this rate seems to increase later. We have detailed information and many identified predictors about the development of conduction disturbances, but the current guidelines provide only weak recommendations. In the early perioperative period (1 month), pacemaker implantation was required in 15 cases (0.55%); in the course of long-term follow-up, 6 patients were still pacemaker-dependent. Perioperative arrhythmias are frequent and serious complications after cardiac surgery, prolong patient recovery time and put financial burden on the hospitals. The rate of need for a permanent pacemaker is low in our hospital, and in the late follow-up we can find only a small part of patients with pacemaker dependency. It would be necessary to start a prospective study and to develop a standardized protocol based on the information currently available. This would be a useful and authoritative help for the postoperative care in cardiac surgery. Orv Hetil. 2020; 161(31): 1271-1280.